Today is a special day for us. It’s the world premiere of SADIE (LSPU Hall @ 7pm)! We are proud to have this meaningful day at home, as part of SJIWFF’s 25th Anniversary. Tonight, we introduce Emily Corcoran who portrays Sadie, one of our lead characters. We held auditions for several days in hopes of finding a teenage girl who had a timeless quality, and also the skill to work on an emotionally charged piece. When Emily auditioned and began to reveal her take on Sadie, she was captivating, and the sincerity in her face and eyes were tell tale signs of acting potential. She was also intelligent, with dedicated work ethic. She makes her film debut in this piece, and we are pretty PUMPED to be part of her growth. Here’s what she had to say about her experience on set (get ready for answers wise beyond her years!):

How did you hear about SADIE and tell us why you auditioned for the part?

I first heard about Sadie through “Casting By Maggie”, a local casting company run by Maggie Keiley. When I read the synopsis, I was immediately intrigued by Sadie’s character. I loved the idea of getting to play someone who experienced emotional trauma, which deeply affected their personality. The entire story seemed so interesting, so I contacted you for an audition right away.

iPhone snapshots of Emily on audition day.

When you got the part, describe what you thought and how you felt, especially when you found out you’d be co-starring with professional actors like Joanne Kelly and Des Walsh.

I can’t even begin to explain how ecstatic I was! I remember sitting at my kitchen table and being unable to stop smiling, I couldn’t believe it. When I found out who I would be working with, I simultaneously felt extremely excited and nervous, both Joanne and Des are high caliber actors and the fact that I was being given the opportunity to work with them was mind blowing. And of course, when it came time to film, I was left speechless by their talent. Joanne is able to convey so much emotion in her eyes and adds so much depth to her character – it is astounding. And Des works with so much ease that he makes you feel at home when filming, not to mention his acting is simply brilliant.

Sadie has quite an opposite and more insular personality than yours (which is delightfully open and warm). How did you prepare for the role?

She definitely is an interesting girl. Sadie, for me, was a welcome, and beautifully complex, challenge. She is a character that sinks into very dark places and as an actress, while preparing to film, my main goal was to understand the way her mind works. I spent a lot of time dissecting her character so I would be able to adapt to her thought process. I also researched the way people, living in isolation, dealt with problems in the 1940s. I feel that ultimately these things helped me portray Sadie to the best of my ability.

Emily Corcoran and Joanne Kelly, the lead actors in Sadie (photo by Duncan De Young)

What was your most favourite or special moment on set? And why?

It’s hard to pick just one – the entire experience was so amazing! One thing that does come to mind however, was the very first scene we shot. I remember being so nervous in the car ride that morning, worried that I would screw up and make a fool of myself, or make you all regret the decision to cast me. However, as soon as I got in position, and Joanne made a comment on how much fun we were going to have, I completely forgot about all those things and I just let myself get lost in doing the thing I love; acting. I remember thinking that morning, “if I could do this for the rest of my life I would be perfectly happy.”

Close up of Emily, Joanne Kelly in foreground (photo by Duncan De Young)

How has the film help you grow as an actor, and how will you move forward with your career?

It has helped me in so many ways. For starters, Sadie was a role that required more preparation than any character I have ever worked on before. It has really changed the way that I take on roles. The biggest way Sadie has helped me as an actress, however, was the access to professional cast and crew. Everyone who worked on this film was amazing and willing to give advice at any time. People were constantly telling me how they got into the business and giving me pointers on how I could continue my career. Joanne even helped me pick out monologues for future auditions. I’m grateful to everyone who took the time to talk to me because they made me see that this is something I really can pursue. Also, one of the many perks of working with such a great crew, is that everyone in town who is involved in film, knows about it. Every time I go in for an audition now people always say “oh you were in Sadie! I’ve heard all about it!” which, is pretty cool. In fact, having worked on Sadie was a big factor in me getting a role that I did this past summer.

Night time shot on set (photo by Duncan De Young)

Do you want to say anything about the film/experience we haven’t asked you?

Yes, I wanted to take a minute to say thank you to you three. I can’t begin to convey how grateful I am for giving me the opportunity to work on this film. I’m sure that you took a risk in choosing a newcomer and I hope I didn’t let you down. You were all so sweet and made my first time working on film comfortable, and full of fun. Working on Sadie has been wonderful for me, you gave me a taste of a world that I have a strong passion for, and I can’t thank you enough.

Hello again all, for this post we catch up with NL’s First Lady of the Arts, Ruth Lawrence, who has a film in the SJIWFF. Her film, QUELLE AFFAIRE, plays Friday night, October 17th, at 7pm – the same night as SADIE. What’s this First Lady business you ask? It’s not really a term here, I just made it up for Ruth and refer to her as this often since she is a writer, director, producer, actor, AND singer. She also works on many community projects that makes the arts scene all the more richer here in St. John’s, and island-wide. She also volunteers her time in a healthy capacity. But don’t take my word for it, maybe take the Queen’s, since Ruth was awarded the 2012 Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal last year, for her contributions to the culture of Newfoundland and Labrador. Her 3 minute short has an air of whimsy and a dream like quality, I asked her some questions about this little gem, here’s what she said:

How did you get the idea for Quelle Affaire?

I saw some beautiful cinepoetry pieces at the AFF in Halifax and found out that it was a project of AFCOOP to pair poets with filmmakers. So with the Nickel’s support, I applied to the Telus Fund. The idea was to make films from poems using mobile and digital technology. I was really excited about the possibility of shooting with an iPhone. Part of my proposal was that, if we were successful in getting the grant, I would get to be the filmmaker but they could choose who to pair me with in the jury selections. They chose Danielle Devereaux. I was familiar with her work, we knew each other and we turned out to be great partners. So once we were paired, she gave me her chapbook, Cardiogram; a gorgeous collection in every way. I played around with a couple of poems but kept getting drawn back to the shortest one in the book. It was so evocative with visual imagery, I couldn’t resist it. Finally, I broached her with my choice and told her why I chose it for this process. She agreed and came along for the whole ride.

In terms of the story idea for the poem, I loved the gut-wrenching aspects of the affair and the inner conflict/digesting of those feelings and it really appealed to me to have some fun while also making a poetic statement about the nature of love affairs.

Who are your main actors?
I was so fortunate to have Stephen Dunn and Meghan Greeley in my film. They are close friends and are so easy with each other, easy to watch. They were both home for Christmas last year so I scheduled the shoot around that and we got lucky! I was really pleased to have you, Latonia, make a special sneak appearance! It was so quick you’ve probably forgotten about it.

Lead Actors Stephen Dunn and Meghan Greeley on set of QA

You used minimal equipment and lighting for your film, but it still looks dreamy! Tell us more about how you accomplished that.

We used ONLY an iPhone 5 to shoot the film because that was the challenge I set for myself. I worked with Brad Gover, who shot it for me. Danielle offered us her & Chris’ gorgeous house as our location so we scouted to make sure the light, if we had a nice day, could work. We set the cafe up in her living room. Brad brought along some lights but we didn’t need to use them, we didn’t even use a tripod. We shot it silent and we recorded the V/O in Justin Davis’ upstart radio station, KEEP. We may have used a bounce board for the light but yes, it was incredibly simple. Brad worked really well with Mother Nature.

It was great to have Stephen on set as an actor because he did double-duty. As we were setting up the shots, I’d say “let’s get the lace pattern on that paper” and as we were setting the shot, Stephen (who is best known as a filmmaker) would be playing around with the angles to get the best reflection for us! It was important to have a handful of keen and knowledgeable people around us that day.

Director Ruth Lawrence and Cinematographer Brad Gover, shooting a scene on an iPhone

Perhaps I should also divulge that we shot this film on January 6, the day after #DarkNL, the day after Brad & I finished a web-series that we shot through those storms and power outages. So this one was a breeze! (We did have to charge the phone at one point.) It took about 4 hours to set up and shoot, it was winter so it was all shot in mid-afternoon sunlight and that made it so beautiful. There was too much snow outside from the storm, so we shot only Meghan’s close ups and then for the travelling shots, I subbed in for her a couple of weeks later while Brad shot from the car, again just holding the camera outside the window. No camera mounts for us!

The props in your film are organic and ‘edible’ in a way are they not? Describe their unique nature for our readers. Do you have a favourite prop?
An essential part of my plan for the film was to make as many of the cafe and jewellery items edible. It’s a becoming a theme with me, using food in films. (See Sweet Pickle) We used everything from olives, caper pods, cherries, pearl onions (we had an onion ‘ring’!), bacon, icing sugar, strawberries, oranges, grapes; there’s even a purse made of cabbage! And although it’s not edible exactly, Gary Thomas painted my bike helmet into a watermelon for me. My favourite? The simple sculptural beauty of the rice fettuccine necklace made by Danielle.

How did you find time to make all those props with your busy schedule?
Oh, I had lots of help. We gathered some friends for a prop-making party. Danielle hosted and Sherry Ryan (who later composed the music), Wanda Nolan (also a screenwriter), and I did most of the assembly of jewellery with her, you made the bread napkin holders for us, and Danielle bought a few special items. We had even more pieces than we could use but we do show them all in the opening scene.

This one is special because, as you’ve said, the dreamy quality is magnificent. I was aiming for simplicity- just a phone, great imagination, and a few dollars. I spent my $600 artist fee on the production. When you consider the talent in the team we pulled together, that is outstanding value. It’s not possible with every project, obviously, but I’m thrilled with the result on this one. I had a small, multi-talented team; lots of friends who did several different things, pitching in wherever it was needed. As a special bonus, after the filming was complete, we ate all the leftovers!

Melon Helmet and Cabbage Purse

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To see more of Ruth’s films view Sweet Pickle here: http://www.nsi-canada.ca/2012/02/sweet-pickle/

Another recent short Talus and Scree http://www.cbc.ca/player/Shows/Shows/More+Shows/Download/ID/2421151575/

And OF COURSE be sure to come see the film at 7pm Oct.17th (LSPU HALL)!!

Hi Everybody! The St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival (25th year!) is underway. It runs from October 14-18th, at venues throughout the city. It’s a banner week for filmmakers and film lovers in NL since we get to see films from around the world. We’ll also get a chance to bond as a community, and celebrate the vibrant arts scene in our province. We live in one of the most beautiful places in the world, and we’ve forged a unique culture on this island, so it makes sense that thoughtful visual art is created here. This year’s festival showcases 4 local features, and 15 local shorts/ docs (see here http://www.womensfilmfestival.com/the-festival/2014-film-schedule/).

Opening and Closing Films at the SJIWFF

The SJIWFF is one of the longest running Women’s FF in the world. Each year just keeps getting better and in 2014 they launched a new program called the [Interactive] Incubator Project (IIP). I was lucky enough to be chosen for this exciting endeavour, with an interactive project I am calling Out in the Cold: The Story of Newfoundland’s Sealskin Boots. Other women chosen for the IIP are Jenna McMillan (PEI) for her project Gran Bandit, Annie McEwen (NL) for The Girls of Sheshatshiu, Christine McLean (NB) with The Wild, Wild East, and Heather Rumancik (NL) for Little Theatre/Big Ideas (Heather also worked on Sadie). Check out more info here:http://www.womensfilmfestival.com/incubator2014/

These five transmedia/web-based projects will receive expert advice on how to develop, focus and network our projects. Jenn Brown is the industry liaison at SJIWFF and the point person for this incredible opportunity, and she also organizes the annual film forum (i.e. daily workshops, pitch sessions, panels etc). We’re thankful to have such a capable and cordial individual at the helm of this important part of the festival. Check out the inspiring schedule we’ll be keeping during the days – WOW (Jenn for Prime Minister!):http://www.womensfilmfestival.com/film-forum-2014/

Jenn Brown – Industry Liasion at SJIWFF

By now you’re probably thinking what a great experience, but wait…. it gets EVEN better. Enter, Carol Whiteman, from Women in the Director’s Chair. She’s a two-time Governor General’s Award-nominee and an award-winner for promoting women’s equality in Canada’s screen-based media industry. Carol’s pretty busy, but she came to St. John’s to guide us through the Women in the Director’s Chair Career Advancement Module (WIDC CAM), as part of the IIP. She’ll also help make sure we get the most of the week. Yesterday at NIFCO, she formed a most dynamic duo with Garwin Sanford, together they taught us a master class on pitching ideas and concepts, as well as the importance of being yourself, and knowing yourself. It was such a great 6 hr workshop/discussion; we didn’t want it to end. For more details on the WIDC CAM see here, http://www.widc.ca/programs/widc-career-advancement-module/

The IIP will be happening again next year and all the women in film/tv should apply, Apply, APPLY! We had our first meeting yesterday, and it was great to have Carol and Garwin hear our ideas, give us feedback on them, as well as give us tips on how to navigate through what sometimes feels like ‘the grind’ in this business. The comradery of the group, and the support of the SJIWFF staff, was also wonderful. They gave us Thanksgiving dinner and a $1000 gift certificate from WF Whites (and to think I usually have a glass of wine with my turkey, this pairing is way better). A huge shout out needs to be given to the SJIWFF board and staff, who have, over the years, taken this festival week from a time to watch films, to an integral event that fosters growth for female AND male filmmakers locally and country wide.

Before I go, I have to link/list names of the people that make this week come together:

Hello Everyone! It’s been a while since we posted. We’ve been busy finishing Sadie. Our producer, Deanne Foley, is currently at this year’s TIFF Talent Lab! She is among the 20 people chosen from applicants worldwide. We’re so happy for her, and can’t think of anyone more deserving. According to the Toronto International Film Festival, the “Talent Lab leads participants in group discussions on a range of topics focused on the artistic side of filmmaking, sharpening the skills and confidence of a new generation of filmmakers.” What an experience for all involved. Here is a blog she provided for our readers about Day 1:

DAY 1 – Talent Lab – Deanne Foley

Deanne Foley

Day 1 of the TIFF Talent Lab in the can. And it’s everything that I’ve hoped it would be so far. We are a diverse group of Canadian and International filmmakers given the privilege of diving deep into the creative process with renowned filmmakers & actors. I’ve been asked to say a few things about what I learned today.

1. We all had to do 1-2 minute self portraits which screened for the group and governors. I was extremely relieved to see that I was not the only filmmaker who stressed over this daunting task. We are filmmakers. It’s easier to tell someone else’s story than our own. On to more important notes:

2. In conversation with prolific producer, Jim Stark, who produced Jim Jarmusch’s films, lead to the important question: what kind of producer do you want to work with? Are you looking for a Yes Man/ Woman who will just go raise the money & let you do want you want for better or worse OR do you want a producer who will push you to craft a compelling story & more likely to say No from time to time in the interest of making a great film. An important question. Personally, I’m interested in the later.

3. We had a screening of Ramin Bahrini’s latest electrifying film 99 Homes about the foreclosure crisis in Orlando and a father’s struggle to get his family home back by working for a corrupt real estate broker. This timely film has Oscar worthy performances by Andrew Garfield and Michael Shannon. Today, we had the pleasure of listening to Ramin’s talk about his creative process. How he never shows up with a shot list or lays marks or cares about the continuity but what he strongly cares about is performance and creating an environment for discovery on the day. But the biggest surprise was to learn about his strong desire to have his film 99 Homes seen as a ‘commercial film.’ When our moderator gingerly suggested that 99 Homes was his most commercial movie to date, he jumped all over it and suggested a banner: “99 Homes– a commercial film” fly over the city of Toronto. He would love that, in fact. ‘Commercial’ is often viewed as a dirty word in filmmaking. We as filmmakers inherently want an audience and once the label of ‘commercial’ is put on a film, it’s deserving of having one.

4. I can’t finish this entry without mentioning Sandra Oh. Don McKellar’s debut feature film, Last Night, was hugely inspiring to me as an emerging Canadian filmmaker and I found Sandra Oh’s intense performance completely engrossing. It was such a treat/ invaluable/ cool to hear Sandra talk about her ideal relationship with a director. How important it is to create a safe, positive environment in order to allow an actor to do his/her work and in turn craft honest, memorable performances. We are getting to do a more intensive acting workshop with Sandra & Doug Barber today. Gotta go.

If you are interested in more of Deanne’s work, check out the St. John’s International Women’s Film Festival, on October 18th. The film, Relative Happiness, which she directed, will be shown at the festival’s closing night!

Most people have heard the idiom ‘the die is cast’, an expression meaning that events have passed the point of no return. Once you sign a lead actor to the key role of your film, and all the legal paper work is drawn up, the die certainly is cast….on your cast. A director needs to think carefully about who will be the lead in her film, since the lead is its focus and the director will spend a LOT of time with him or her.

Joanne as Myka Bering

We actively pursued Joanne Kelly to play the role of our nurse, Josephine. We needed someone who could be strong and gentle, caring yet distant, and voyeuristic while still vulnerable . That was a tall order, but we knew she could do it. We’ve been fans of her work since the Bay of Love and Sorrows (2002) and over the years she has starred in numerous roles, most recently as Myka Bering in Syfy’s hit show Warehouse 13 (2009-2014).

Joanne and I grew up together in Bay D’Espoir, Newfoundland. And even when we were in our teens, she was uncommonly stunning, talented and intelligent. It was evident she was destined for great things, so it came as no surprise when she excelled in acting on big and small screens worldwide. After she said yes to starring in Sadie, we were off to the races!

Working with an actor of her calibre is a dream. With any motivation I threw at Joanne, she delivered, and then some. When I was debating a beat, or a moment in a scene, Joanne had many valuable contributions, as well. As a director, from the time you arrive on set, until the day is done, you are constantly making decisions, so when your lead actor is a good partner, you feel immense gratitude, but also a sense of reciprocity. This is a very rewarding feeling. And I think, leads to a better film.

Joanne Kelly as our lead character, Josephine, in SADIE.

Attitude is as important as talent, ask anyone. I love to work with calm and focused people – it makes the grueling days joyous. Joanne was exactly that, and up for anything. She came home from sunny California and faced a 4.5 hr time zone difference. Within a day, we had her out in NL weather, hands in cold water, at times wearing nothing but a nightdress in bitter wind. She never complained once (but look for her breath in nearly every shot which speaks to the cold we were all in)!

Joanne and I hadn’t seen each other in quite some time, maybe 15 years, and I envisioned she’d be the same person she’d always been: down to earth, fun, charming and filled with artistic integrity. And she was. I was very lucky to share and explore Sadie with someone from my home. If you said I rolled the die on suggesting Joanne for our film, I would say I rolled a perfect 6.

Joanne and Sheilagh Guy Murphy (as Helena) in SADIE

As with all posts we try to leave you with something to watch based on what we’re writing about. In honour of my pleasurable working experience with Joanne, I researched a few director-actor relationships that seemed steeped in mutual respect. Here are some cool movies with a female director and a female lead:

We are just five days into our Indiegogo fundraiser for SADIE and already we’ve raised almost 70% of our funding goal! We are so thankful to all of our contributors thus far, and we definitely want to keep this momentum going. For anyone who hasn’t checked out our Indiegogo campaign, you can have a look at our video (which we shot in beautiful Quidi Vidi) and the different perks we’re offering to our generous funders right here: http://igg.me/at/SadieTheFilm/x

Still from our campaign video in Quidi Vidi

Feel free to share this link if you’re able, and if you want to make a contribution, please know that even the smallest amount brings us closer to ensuring we can create the film we set out to make, and that our vision for SADIE can be realized. We are aiming to accurately reconstruct the 1940s in Newfoundland, and to do it justice, we’ll be devoting quite a bit of our budget to the art direction. People will be more invested in the story if they buy into its reality. Details, both big and small, will help convey the world our characters live in. We’re very honoured to be telling a story based in our home province and are working hard to get it right.

This is a perfect place to mention three award winning films with historical settings and incredible production design. These are movies with huge budgets beyond the scope of a short, but we’re sharing them with you because we find them so inspirational. They also feature lead roles for women, just like our film.

1) Atonement (2008) starring Keira Knightly.

Set in 1935

2) Marie Antoinette (2006) starring Kirsten Dunst.

Set in 1777

3) Elizabeth: The Golden Age (2007) starring Cate Blanchette

Set in 1585

Thanks for reading, and please check out our campaign..or pass it on!!

As an emerging screenwriter, I’m still figuring out my “process”. Currently, I’m completing the final draft of SADIE. I figured that since I’m in the throes of re-writes, it’d be a great topic for my inaugural blog post. This is something that I’ve always found challenging as a writer – editing my own scripts. Here are Emily’s Steps to Your Final Script.

Working away on the SADIE script

Step 1: For your first draft, you can pretend your budget is a billion bucks. You can do this, and I say go for it and pretend away.This is the only stage where you can really maintain this level of ignorance – during your Fantasy First Draft (unless you’re like Martin Scorsese or something and your budget really is a billion bucks, in which case, Hi Marty! Thanks for your interest in female filmmakers! And yes I can call him Marty because he is hypothetically reading our blog). Anyhow, for your Fantasy First Draft, you can pretend to have a “Pirate’s of the Caribbean” budget. However, when you start making changes to your script, you really should consider what’s possible, given the budget, whatever it may be. Things will get cut and it’s better to look ahead and decide what is likely to get cut and creatively maneuver things around, if that’s possible. It’s also a great idea to discuss potential changes with the rest of the creative team before delving into subsequent drafts.

Step 2: Consider all things practical: How many different locations are there? Are all locations necessary to move your story along, and for the collective vision of the team? How many secondary characters do you have? Do all characters individually serve a purpose? Sometimes, all the elements of two (or more) characters can be combined into one single character. Creatively, this is effective because combining the two characters into one will likely beef up said character – the fuller the characters, the stronger the script. Practically, hiring one actor costs less than two, which will free up some money for another part of the production.

Step 3: Look closely at the story you’re trying to tell (this is good to do before your Fantasy First Draft, really). Try to break it down to its simplest terms. I find that I really let my instincts guide me through my first draft; however, it’s really important to have tangible reasons for what you’re writing that you can articulate. Film is inherently collaborative – that’s one of the reasons I love it so much. This collaboration means that many people are going to be asking you questions and making suggestions about your script. This collaboration will be successful if you can honestly answer those questions.

So far, these are some of the things I’ve done in order to finalize the script for SADIE. Have I mentioned that it’s a thriller? The first thriller I’ve ever written? In honour of our old friend, Marty, I’ve attached a very short clip from one of my favourite thrillers, Cape Fear. This film just happens to be directed by Mr. Scorsese, and edited by Thelma Schoonmaker, who has edited all of Scorsese’s films from 1980 (Raging Bull) through to 2013 (Wolf of Wall Street). Cape Fear Clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rm81LSKJC2k